


Rosewell

by julien (julie)



Category: due South
Genre: Episode: s02e11 Starman, First Kiss, M/M, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 1996-07-16
Updated: 1996-07-16
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:00:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21856441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/julie/pseuds/julien
Summary: Vecchio keeps puzzling over a day that was entirely ridiculous, and of course the Mountie remains the most ridiculous thing of all. … Vecchio eventually has to admit that Fraser is kind of sweet, though.
Relationships: Benton Fraser/Ray Vecchio
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9





	Rosewell

**Author's Note:**

> **Notes:** This is set immediately after the episode 211 STARMAN. I gave myself two challenges: to actually write something under 10,000 words for once; and, to do a lighter piece based in the second season. This is the result. 
> 
> **First published:** 16 July 1996 in my zine Pure Maple Syrup 3

# Rosewell 

♦

As he paced around their hotel room at the Constellation, Ray glared at the ridiculous decorations which mainly consisted of tinfoil UFOs and glitter. A fitting end to a particularly stupid day. Stuck for the night in Rosewell, Illinois – which, as far as the Chicago cop was concerned hadn’t existed until the universe decided it was time to yet again vex Ray Vecchio – stuck here sharing a room with a loony Mountie. While Ian MacDonald, idiot and pathological liar extraordinaire, was waiting at the bar hoping to get lucky with Audrey, who of course _hadn’t_ been abducted by aliens…

Imagine the moron MacDonald having a more successful love-life than Ray Vecchio. Proof, as if Ray needed it after the day he’d just gotten through, that life was not fair or even moderately reasonable.

Throwing up his hands in horror, Ray let out a strangled cry. Fraser, sitting calmly out of the way, looked up at him. Ray advised, ‘ _Don’t_ ask me what’s wrong, Benny. Just don’t.’

The Mountie obediently remained silent for a whole five seconds. ‘May I instead ask what you’re doing?’

‘I’m unwinding after a horrible day.’

‘Is that why you’re walking anti-clockwise?’ For some unfathomable reason Fraser must have thought he’d just made a joke, for he sat there snickering happily to himself.

Ray quelled him with a glare. ‘I can’t get today out of my head, that’s what’s wrong. I just keep going over and over it, and none of it makes any kind of sense.’

‘Perhaps if you stopped walking round and round the room, Ray, your thoughts would also settle.’

‘Helpful advice from a Canadian, that’s exactly what I need.’

Apparently taking Ray literally, the Mountie opened his mouth.

‘Don’t,’ Ray forestalled him. ‘Just don’t.’

Another circuit. One bed, black velvet spread – thankfully large enough so Ray could probably ignore Fraser’s presence that night. One cheap set of drawers. One table and two chairs. One Mountie, looking tired and patient. Another circuit.

‘No, none of it makes sense. I mean, why did you even want me along on this one, Fraser? Why insist on dragging me along? You didn’t need the Vecchio Riviera taxi service.’

Fraser blinked. Twice. ‘Is that why you think I usually ask for your help?’

‘Yeah. You want the Riv or my jurisdiction.’ Ray shrugged. This didn’t really bother him anymore because he and Fraser were still best friends. Yeah, these days only Vecchio Senior carped about his eldest son being used. ‘But I don’t have either out here,’ Ray continued. ‘No car, no jurisdiction. So why did you make me come?’

‘Well…’ Fraser seemed at a bit of a loss.

‘Frustration. The utter annoyance that is MacDonald. Cold. Hunger. Dependence on others for transport. The danger of being shot by military types with big guns. Humiliation.’ Another circuit of the room. ‘It’s been the kind of day that makes fire and brimstone look superfluous.’

‘Well…’ said the Mountie.

‘Yes, Benny?’

‘I did suspect, actually, for one instant there in Ian’s bus, that you might have had, Ray, just one brief moment of, well… fun.’

Luckily Ray was walking away from Fraser at the time, for the cop found he’d inadvertently smiled. ‘No. Surely not. You’d better get your eyes examined, Benny.’

‘Oh,’ Fraser said in a small voice.

Another circuit.

‘Ray?’

‘Yes, Benny?’

‘Those aren’t the only reasons I like to work on cases with you.’

‘No?’

‘In fact, I’ve found our partnership, unofficial though it is, to be a very beneficial one. We have a range of complementary skills and characteristics.’

‘Oh,’ said Ray, pondering this. Another circuit, slower this time. ‘And what skill or characteristic did you need from me today? I mean, I didn’t even do anything.’

‘I wanted your skepticism, Ray, in order to balance Ian’s propensity to, er, to exaggerate and distort.’

Yeah, OK, Ray thought – that made sense.

‘And I wanted your willingness to challenge him. You see, I felt honor-bound to give credence to Ian’s stories, so you in effect provided a balance to my… courtesy. Between your impatience and my persistence, we solved the case.’

‘Huh,’ said Ray. ‘So, you wanted my complete lack of faith in people and my rudeness.’

‘You know that’s not a fair description of your qualities,’ the Mountie quietly countered. ‘I needed your in-your-face honesty, Ray. I needed your instinct for truth.’

‘Oh.’ Ray made another circuit, considering this. ‘Is that really how you see me?’

‘Yes.’ A pause. ‘I admit that sometimes your best qualities are also your most difficult.’

‘Oh.’ Ray tried to remember the last time anyone had valued him for any of these things. Sure, his family liked him for his sense of responsibility, and Ray knew he was a good cop because he was hard-working and curious – but maybe it took a too-good-to-be-true Mountie to like Ray for his bluntness and his inability to suffer fools gladly.

Another pause lengthened before Fraser finally said, ‘Ray, may I ask – is that really how you see me? Working with you for the sake of your car and your jurisdiction?’

Ray slowed to a halt, and looked at his friend. He shrugged unhappily, and then nodded, for they both knew the answer was _yes_. ‘I guess there are other reasons, too,’ Ray offered.

‘Such as…?’

‘Well, I don’t know, Benny. My in-your-face whining or whatever the hell it is you want me around for.’

‘Oh,’ said Fraser. And he stood, looking kind of blank. ‘I, er, I think I’ll get ready for bed now, Ray. If that’s all right with you.’

‘Yeah. Yeah, me, too.’ Ray sighed. Oh, the joys of being friends with a man who refused to spring for the luxury of a separate room.

They each took their turn in the bathroom. Because they’d left the civilization of Chicago that lunchtime with every intention of being home before dinner, they had no luggage – so they both simply stripped down to their underwear, and then climbed under the covers. Fraser reached to turn out the last light, and the two of them lay there on either side of the large bed.

A long silence passed. Ray began bothering over whether he was ever going to relax enough to fall asleep. And he worried about whether Fraser was relaxed enough – Ray sensed he wasn’t, although maybe the Mountie was always like that. And Ray fretted about whether he’d dream or snore or otherwise embarrass himself. And then he troubled over –

‘Oh, Ray!’ Fraser suddenly said in tones of delight. ‘There are stars scattered across our ceiling!’

Ray opened his eyes, guessing what he’d see. Yeah, fluorescent five-pointers, and not even particularly well arranged. ‘Kid’s stuff, Benny. Cheap kid’s stuff.’

‘Oh, it’s lovely,’ Fraser said, apparently charmed.

And Ray laughed out loud, for he was charmed that Benny was charmed.

Except that Fraser didn’t interpret it that way. ‘Mock me if you like,’ he said stiffly, ‘but I would rather be naive and open to experience than be cynical and closed to it. Goodnight, Ray.’

‘Oh, don’t be like that.’ Ray rolled over onto his side, and tried to see Fraser’s face in the dimness. ‘I wasn’t laughing _at_ you, you idiot.’

‘No?’

‘No.’ And Ray frowned now, a little puzzled by Fraser apparently wanting reassurance. Usually the Mountie seemed so damned independent. ‘I was delighted that you were delighted, that’s all. I was happy, just for one brief moment of course, so I laughed.’

‘Oh.’

‘Yes, _oh,’_ Ray said, and he was indeed gently mocking the fellow this time. Then, more seriously, he said, ‘You know Teresa, my niece? Little Terry?’

‘Yes.’

‘Well, Terry wanted stars like this up on her bedroom ceiling, and Tony was too damned lazy to get up on a ladder, and he kept putting it off until I finally helped her instead. And we arranged them like the constellation of Orion with his belt and his sword and all. The spares we put up like the ones around Orion, so it was done properly. Not like this – this is just a mess.’

A pause stretched. Fraser finally said, ‘No wonder your nieces and nephews adore you.’

Ray let out a chuckle. ‘Oh, it isn’t hard to get a kid to like you. Bribing them with ice cream usually works a treat.’

‘I know you don’t mean that, Ray, and it is a difficult thing. Unless –’

‘What?’

‘Well, Ray, you have some innate characteristics that, er… Your qualities include…’

The attempted compliment fell away into an awkward silence. It was obviously time to tactfully withdraw and get some sleep. Ray could just make out Fraser’s pale arm lying at his side on top of the black velvet spread. He reached out to clasp his friend’s hand for a moment’s reassurance. And was surprised when the hand grasped his in return, and then wouldn’t let go without a fuss that Ray wasn’t prepared to make. Yet.

‘Ray?’

‘Yes, Benny?’

‘Who is Brad Pitt?’

‘Who’s…’ Ray repeated, floundering a little. And then he recalled the little in-your-face tirade he’d delivered to MacDonald on the topic of hopeless love-lives. ‘Oh. Brad Pitt’s a movie star – well, an actor, to be fair. Women all think he’s God’s gift, most of them anyhow. He’s what they call, in the vernacular, a hunk.’

A silence passed. That hand refused to let Ray’s go, lying there on the black velvet. Ray wondered what was going on in that strange mind of the Mountie’s.

‘Ray?’

‘Are we going to get some sleep soon?’ Ray asked. ‘It’s way late.’

‘Oh. Yes, Ray.’ Poor Fraser’s tones were quite disappointed.

The cop chided himself, _You really shouldn’t be so unkind to the Mountie_ – and silently replied, _Oh, but it’s so much fun_. ‘I was teasing you, Benny, so slap me about a bit. What were you going to say?’

‘I don’t want to slap you, Ray,’ the fellow said, sounding quite sorry for himself. ‘I was going to say that, although I’ve never seen him, I’m sure – that is, if my interpretation of your story was correct – I’m sure I’d think you look like Brad Pitt.’

Ray guffawed. He’d never done it before in his life, he never would again, but he was so surprised and so amused that he did it now. He guffawed.

Fraser’s hand attempted to tug loose, but Ray wouldn’t let it go.

‘Oh, Benny,’ Ray said fondly, ‘if you only knew how ridiculous that is. Brad Pitt and me, well, we’re about the same age. And we’re both Americans. There the resemblance ends. I was only saying it to make a point to MacDonald – who, by the way, looks nothing like him, either – I was saying it for comic effect, for the… for the sheer ludicrousness… for the… Oh.’

Silence returned as Ray’s logic and instincts finally kicked into overdrive. Fraser’s hand tried to get free again.

‘Benny?’

A hushed voice replied, ‘Yes, Ray?’

‘Were you just coming on to me?’

‘Coming on to you?’ the Mountie repeated innocently.

‘You know very well what I mean,’ Ray said.

‘Yes, Ray.’

A sigh escaped him. ‘ _Yes_ , you know what I mean or, _yes_ , you were feeding me a line?’

No response for what felt like forever. Then, ‘Both, Ray,’ Fraser admitted. ‘I, er, I think you’re rather wonderful. But… what you said about the drill? I don’t want it to happen that way.’

‘It’s going to happen?’ Ray asked, kind of dazed.

‘Yes, Ray. But I don’t intend to walk out that door, with or without a souvenir. That is,’ Fraser continued, ‘I will of course be _literally_ walking out that door at some stage, but not _metaphorically_. Or, at least,’ Fraser suggested, ‘we could walk out together?’

Silence.

‘I wanted to be completely clear about that,’ Fraser stated very firmly.

‘Good,’ the cop replied. ‘Be as clear as you like, but you lost me somewhere after, _Both, Ray_.’

Apparently Fraser was giving up on words as a method of communication, for he shifted closer. And then Ray noticed that the fluorescent stars were winking out, and Benny was leaning close over him, and Benny was… kissing him on the mouth. Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles. Ray just lay there and took it. Like a man. However the hell that was, when it was another man embracing him – Ray would have to make this up as he went along. But when he let himself get caught up in his friend’s tentative and clumsy kiss, when Ray let himself participate, let himself add some knowledge and skill to the proceedings – well, it was actually pretty damned incredible. In fact, on reflection, Ray Vecchio had to admit it was about the nicest thing that had ever happened to him.

‘Benny?’ Ray said some long while later.

‘Yes, Ray?’

‘What you were trying to say before. Was it something like you’ll still think I look like Brad Pitt in the morning?’

‘Oh, I think you’ll look even better.’

‘Better than Brad Pitt?’

‘Yes, Ray.’ And the Mountie seemed so utterly certain of this.

The cop grinned. ‘I love you, too, Benny.’

♦

**Author's Note:**

> You're all awesome! I'm currently uploading my old Due South fic - and I suspect this is the one that's getting the most attention because it's the one I forgot to backdate when I first posted it. If you'd like to read more, you can find them here:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/users/julie/works?fandom_id=337


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